Chefs Suggest Year's Great Cookbooks

Dec. 23, 2004 --

The holidays equal family, gifts and many hours in the kitchen. In "Good Morning America's" latest installment of "Holiday 101," Sara Moulton, Wolfgang Puck and Emeril Lagasse revealed some of their favorite cookbooks of the year.

Sara Moulton's Suggestions:

"Jamie's Dinners," by chef Jamie Oliver: Moulton says this cookbook focuses on everyday cooking for you family. Its recipes call for fresh, healthy ingredients that can be found at most supermarkets.

"Marcella Says," by chef Marcella Hazan: This is the fifth book by the 80-year-old "Queen of Italian Cuisine." Moulton says Hazan explains the recipes in her book like your grandmother would explain a family recipe handed down from generation to generation.

"Bouchon," by Thomas Keller: Bouchon is the Bistro version of Keller's fancy food. Keller, of The French Laundry restaurant in Napa, which is widely regarded as the best restaurant in the country, offers some advanced, yet manageable, techniques in his new book.

Wolfgang Puck's Suggestions:

"The Gourmet Cookbook," by Ruth Reichl: This book features more than 1,000 recipes from more than 60 years of the best recipes from "Gourmet" magazine.

"The New Best Recipe Cookbook," by Cook's Illustrated: This book also features more than 1,000 recipes and it also explains why you do something in a recipe, so you become a better cook

"Fast Food My Way," by Jacques Pepin: This book, from one of the original TV Chefs to bring French cuisine to the masses, shows readers how to make great French recipes without the fuss.

Emeril Lagasse's Suggestions:

"Raichlen's Indoor Grilling," by Steven Raichlen: Lagasse says this book isn't a traditional grilling guide. He says the book contains very creative recipes, even grilled desserts.

"Everyday Dining with Wine," by Andrea Immer: Lagasse says Immer, who hosts her own wine TV series and writes a column in "Esquire" magazine, gets rid of the notion that wine is only for special occasions in this cookbook. Each chapter is a different wine, so you can say 'I have this kind of wine, what can I make to go with it?'

"Workin': More Kitchen Sessions with Charlie Trotter," by Charlie Trotter: The world-famous chef from Chicago equates food with music in this book. Lagasse says the book is a guide so that readers can learn to improvise on a recipe, like a blues musician would a song.

Bonus Pick from "Good Morning America's" Marysol Castro:

"Cooking 'Round the Clock," by Rachael Ray: Castro says she likes this book because it contains simple, yet delicious recipes, that take just 30 minutes to put together.